Trapped with the Earl of Sin

Chapter 12

CHAPTER TWELVE

M artin had to admit, Luke’s mother had not been lying. This most certainly was a fancy occasion. It seemed like the Wessons felt like they had something to prove when they planned this event. It truly seemed like they wanted to overshadow everyone else throwing events in the local area.

Martin was not sure that he could ever envision himself in that position, caring enough about what other people were doing to want to compete with them. It all seemed incredibly pointless to him. A waste of time.

But here he was, ready for another interesting night.

He might not have spent a lot of time at this sort of event normally, but then he did not usually have Susanna to share this time with him.

Speaking of whom… where was she?

Martin scanned the crowd, his eyes darting past the elegantly dressed guests and elaborate decorations. The ballroom was a sea of vibrant colors and animated faces, but there was only one person he was truly interested in seeing.

Susanna, Susanna, Susanna, Susanna. Oh my!

His heart skipped a beat the moment he spotted Susanna. She was not lying at breakfast, she really did have a stunning, eye-catching gown on. It was one who had all eyes upon her because she looked so ravishing in it, and she did not even seem to realize it.

Martin was always surprised by how coy and shy she was, how little she seemed to see her own beauty. Perhaps that was one of the many things that lured him in.

Susanna seemed to sense his eyes on her, more than anyone else’s, and she turned to face him before descending the stairs with her family. He could hardly breathe as an intense desire gripped him. It was going to be incredibly hard for him to behave himself when she looked like that.

“My goodness,” Luke commented beside him, reminding him that he was not alone in his anxious wait. “She looks absolutely wonderful. I must be the luckiest man alive.”

Martin knew Luke was talking about his bride-to-be, but he found himself nodding along, unable to take his eyes off of Susanna. The feeling was so intense that for a brief moment, he actually considered telling Luke how he felt, to see if his friend approved of his feelings.

But he shut himself up at the very last second, reminding himself that Susanna did not seem like the sort of person who would be too happy having everyone talking about her behind her back. She had her walls up as it was because of everything that her family had been through, and he wanted to respect her privacy.

Plus, they did not know where this was going to lead, so it was probably for the best that no one knew.

The more people who knew about this, the more complicated it could become. Martin never went out of his way to make things complicated, and he did not wish to start now.

“Come on,” Luke urged excitedly. “Let us go and ask the ladies to dance before anyone else does.”

Martin had been planning on waiting until a little later on in the evening before he asked Susanna to dance, despite making the joke about wanting to be the first name on her dance card. He had wanted to hold back and play it cool, but he could not explain that to Luke, so he followed behind him and offered Susanna his hand.

Thankfully, she readily accepted it, looking pleased to have him as the first man to hold her.

He only wished that he could be the only man to hold her tonight.

“How are you?” Martin asked her the moment they were close together on the dance floor and the music was playing in the background. He hoped now that they could actually chat without worrying that anyone else could overhear them.

“Yes, I am quite fine,” Susanna replied blandly, not really picking up on his hidden meaning.

“No, I mean how are you after everything that happened before ?”

Susanna’s eyes widened. “Oh, I see. I understand what you are getting at now.” An intense redness burned in her cheeks. It made Martin smile to see her embarrassed. “Yes, I am fine. It was… interesting in Edwin’s room. I am surprised at everything that happened.”

“Me too.” Martin nodded emphatically. “I am shocked at what we found as well.”

The gun seemed to float in the air between them. An invisible weight that was crushing them because neither of them knew what to do with it. It was unnerving to know that there was someone among them who could potentially be dangerous, and they had no idea how or when he would react.

“It is still in Edwin’s room,” Martin confessed. “I did not take it with me.”

“That is probably for the best,” Susanna reassured him. “We do not want Edwin to know that we are on to him.”

“I do not like the idea that he still has access to it,” Martin continued, his voice low and tense. “But you are right. We have to be cautious.”

Susanna nodded, her eyes scanning the room briefly as if she expected Edwin to be watching them. “We need to figure out our next steps carefully. We cannot let him suspect anything. Not until we have more evidence or a plan to confront him.”

Martin’s grip tightened slightly on her waist as they danced. “I agree. But we must be vigilant. If Edwin is as dangerous as we suspect, we cannot afford to make a wrong move.”

Even as they looked his way now, Edwin was smiling and outwardly happy, but Martin could not shake off the worries that there was something going on behind that man’s eyes.

“We need to keep an eye on him,” Martin hissed at Susanna. “Even more so now. The closer that we get to the day of the wedding, the more vigilant we need to be. If Edwin is going to act and do something crazy, then we need to be aware.”

Susanna’s grip tightened on him. “Do you think he will try and hurt someone?”

Martin would have loved to be able to reassure Susanna, but there was no telling what Edwin was going to do. A man with a gun was always a worry. A man writing letters to his friends about still being in love with Mary, despite her engagement to another man, was troubling too. Especially if he considered what could have happened to Duncan…

“I do not know what he is capable of,” Martin confessed. “But I do know that I am not going to take my eyes off him the whole time.”

Susanna nodded in agreement. “Then I will do the same thing.”

The seriousness of her face made Martin want to chuckle a little. He could not resist shooting a little teasing comment her way, just to try and lighten the mood a little. He did not want their whole dance to be ruined because of Edwin’s little plans.

“And if we should happen to end up in the closet again…”

He laughed as Susanna’s face flushed beetroot-red. “I cannot believe you just said that. I cannot see any way that we will end up in the closet again…”

But as she made that retort, Martin could not help but notice that her face fell a little, almost as if she were disappointed by the idea of not being able to get him alone again. Since he felt exactly the same way about her, this caused a stirring in the pit of his stomach. It was so tempting to try and pull her somewhere now, maybe outside in the gardens so they could sneak off for a walk alone, to see what might happen between them…

But as quickly as that idea flooded his mind, he pushed it to the side. The closer they got to one another, the more at risk their hearts were when all of this was over. He had to remember that this was only going to be a temporary thing, so he needed to be careful. For both of their sakes.

It was a shame though, because he was pretty sure that he could see the same hunger in her eyes that he was feeling. He was quite sure if they found themselves alone, she would respond very happily if he leaned in to kiss her.

But as the music came to a stark end, he knew that there were far too many eyes around this room, and that members of the ton very much enjoyed their gossip. If he did not want to be talked into something that he was not ready for, then he needed to separate from Susanna before either of them ended up in trouble.

“Thank you for the dance,” Susanna replied smilingly as they stepped away from one another. “That was very fun.”

“It is a shame that you will have to spend the rest of the night dancing with gentlemen who do not excite you in the same way that I do.”

Susanna smirked, looking like she was enjoying the teasing. “I could say the same about you. If you do end up dancing with any other women.”

He did not want to be in the arms of anyone else. He did not want to look into the eyes of another woman tonight, and he was sure that Susanna could feel that. But they had no choice but to pull apart from one another and go their separate ways.

It was only when his mother reached out to him that he was shaken from his thoughts.

“Martin, come and stand with me for a while,” his mother commented, with a knowing smile playing on her lips. “I think we have some things to talk about.”

“We do?” Martin groaned inwardly. This was not a conversation he wanted to have.

“I would like to know more about Lady Susanna.” He already knew that was going to happen, but hearing his mother’s words made his heart sink regardless. “There certainly seemed to be something buzzing between the pair of you on the dance floor just then.”

Martin rolled his eyes. “She is the sister of the bride. It is my duty to ask her to dance. I would do it for anyone.”

But his argument was not strong. If Martin could hear that, then he was sure that his mother could hear it as well. That was only going to make her a lot more relentless. If she thought that there was even a chance of Martin marrying Susanna, then she would never let it go.

Yet, even knowing that, Martin could not take his eyes off Susanna as she stood by the refreshments table, talking with her sister. There was a magnetic pull dragging his eyes her way, making it impossible for him to act normally. Even with his mother’s eyes upon him, judging him and watching his face as he stared at her.

“Interesting,” his mother commented, making him sigh. “Well, I think she is a very lovely, suitable young lady, if that means anything to you.”

“Mother,” he began carefully, “I appreciate your opinion, but it is not as simple as that.”

His mother raised an eyebrow, her knowing smile never faltering. “Oh? And why is that, Martin? You are not already spoken for, are you?”

“No, of course not,” he replied quickly, feeling the heat rise in his cheeks. “It is just… Susanna and I… we are here for the wedding. Nothing more. We are here to ensure that Luke and Mary have a nice time.”

“And that is all? Because, Martin, it did not look like that was all. I have never seen you look at another woman that way in all my life.”

A thick ball of emotion lodged itself in Martin’s throat. “I am sure.”

But of course, his mother could see right through him. “If that is what you want to say, then so be it. But if something were to happen, just know that you have my full support.”

Martin nodded, grateful for her understanding but still feeling the weight of the situation bearing down on him. “Thank you, Mother. That means a lot to me.”

She walked away from him, leaving him stewing in his thoughts. He did not know what he was going to do now. He had not wanted anything to become obvious to other people, but of course, his mother had picked up on it anyway. He was definitely going to have trouble with her now.

How was he going to keep his eye on Edwin when his mother was going to be relentless now? Watching his every move? Especially when he was with Susanna?

Martin took a deep breath and tried to compose himself. The night was far from over, and he needed to stay focused. The music swelled around him as he moved through the crowd, nodding politely to acquaintances and making small talk with distant relatives. His mind, however, was always on Susanna and the dangerous secret they shared.

He knew that he was going to have to get closer to Edwin, even if he did not want to, because that man was just about the only person who could provide him with the distraction that he so desperately needed.

Edwin had been mingling with the guests, seemingly carefree, but Martin knew better. There was something lurking beneath that polished exterior, something dangerous.

Spotting Edwin near the refreshments table with Luke at his side, Martin seized the opportunity. He moved closer to them and struck up a casual conversation in the hope that he might glean some new information.

All while being discrete in front of Luke, of course.

“Edwin, Luke,” Martin greeted them warmly, picking up a glass of champagne from a passing waiter. “How are you two enjoying the evening?”

“Martin,” Luke said with a broad smile. “It has been a wonderful night so far. Edwin here was just telling me about his latest business venture. Fascinating stuff, really.”

“Oh, do tell,” Martin encouraged, turning his attention to Edwin. He needed to keep the conversation light and friendly, but also find a way to dig deeper.

Edwin smiled, though it did not quite reach his eyes. Truth be told, he did not seem too pleased to have Martin join them. “Nothing too exciting, I am afraid. Just some investments I have been making. You know how it is, always looking for the next opportunity.”

“Of course,” Martin replied, nodding. “What sort of investments, if you do not mind my asking?”

“A bit of this and that,” Edwin said vaguely, his eyes darting around the room. “I have been focusing on expanding into some new markets. There is a lot of potential out there if you know where to look.”

Martin sensed that Edwin was being deliberately evasive. Were there really any investments? Was he trying to get Luke mixed up in something dangerous?

Martin knew that he was going to have to stick around for this conversation for as long as he could, just in case he picked on something that he might consider a deserved punishment for his friend.